The good news: The Nationals have a chance to sweep the Mets today, and the man they'll send to the mound (Gio Gonzalez) will be seeking his league-leading 13th victory of the season. The bad news: The Mets are sending their own All-Star to the mound seeking his 13th win in knuckleballer R.A. Dickey.

So we've got a great pitching matchup for a Thursday matinee on South Capitol Street. The Nats also will have one of their best relievers available for the first time this season, with Drew Storen officially activated off the disabled list this morning, creating an eight-man bullpen for the moment.

On the other hand, they'll be playing with only a four-man bench. And one of those men is Ian Desmond, who remains out of the lineup with an oblique strain.

Lol F&I – you must not watch much baseball to make that statement. You never saw Willie Harris play second? Dunn in left? LoDuca in left (shudder), Nyjer throwing his glove and giving up an insider?Too much negativity. Do you people also cry at other people's birthday parties because you don't get a present?

Fear; the snark was for the Desi question. Much was made of our luck, that he wasn't required to swing, the other night. You knuckler question is a good one, though, I'll bet they can throw a long time, if needed…

I remember the Red Sox never cared about rest days or pitch counts with Wakefield. But I agree with Jack, Dickey throws at least some fastball. I think he's sort of like Livo, needs some rest, but not as much as most starters…

Ok – it's not like Lombo made a huge error at 2B folks. The runner was extremely fast and the difference was a millisecond. Lombo is a rookie who has been jerked out of his position and then back again. Please. The worst play you have ever seen? You must not watch much baseball. It wasn't great or even good, but Gio is the one who isn't very sharp today. I thought this was going to be a pitcher's duel, by the way. I hope Zim showed the rest of the guys that they can get to Dickey.

swami, no, it wasn't the worst play I ever saw, but Lombo is just slow at 2B. Maybe that's in comparison to Espy, and we are spoiled, but I saw him do that a couple of times last night, and on TV also.

NatsJack – seriously, 7 times? You keeping a log or something? Looked to me that he was being very deliberate and too careful – playing afraid to make a mistake. Again, not good – he needs to relax and let his muscle memory take over. Espi is pretty fast and has a gun so it probably looks worse in comparison. Not saying Lombo is ever going to be a Hall of Famer, but he isn't that bad, either. He was taking to left field ok, very tentative back at second. He has been a real sport at doing what the team needs – lead off, ok — play left, ok — go back to second, ok. Give the kid a break. He's a kid who would normally still be at AAA who has risen to the Major League occasion more than once for us, including the last couple of games. Gio is pitching beach balls out there. Offense needs to figure it out. Haven't we learned yet not to give up the game this early?

Just because Lombo is not as good as Espi, doesn't mean he's not a good 2d baseman. Let's not forget he won a Gold Glove in the minors for second base. And he's been turning some terrific DP's this series (including last inning)

On the other hand — maybe we just let Gio stay out there today and eat the innings, hope for late offense – it wouldn't be the first time we came alive late. We are going into a tough weekend and might not want to tax the pen.

Not trying to be negative about Lombo–he also played 3B for a while. And who just got a hit when hits are hard to come by.He's done everything he was told to, and mostly succeeded. I just think people had unrealistic expectations when he first came up.

Swami, it's not unreasonable to believe that Davey will do just that – leave Gio in and save the bullpen. Winning today but putting ourselves in a bad position for the next series is not the Davey way.

Lets Go Nats ( clap, clap, clap) , Lets Go Nats ( clap, clap, clap) – the role of Clint on this blog is now being played by me. When the going gets tough and all that. It's not over til it's over. It's always darkest before dawn. You know,the tough just need to get going. Go Nats!!! I am determined to enjoy this game, by the way, no matter what!

Wonk…..minor league awards for defense mean nothing. Lombo is a below average defender primarily because of his arm and limited range. I like him for what he is and that is as a utility guy with a decent bat.

Ok, then, so go Craig Stammen! Does anyone think maybe Stammen could go back to starting? He just seems stronger and more mature than when he started before. Maybe he could go down to the minors for a bit and stretch out in August and be the fifth starter if Lannan and Wang aren't going to cut it? I've always like that kid – so we get to watch him pitch for a while today. Baseball is unpredictable. So be it.

Think anyone is a little shook up by the Ankiel move? I know they are pros, but they are people, too, and young. Team chemistry is a powerful thing. Ok- so now the game is out of reach. How about getting Drew in the game?

The explanation for DFAing Ankiel, as I understand it, was that none of the pitchers w/ options deserved to be demoted to the minor leagues. They don't have to make another roster decision prior to, at least, Monday, post-DH. However, I don't see how they can go w/ a short bench beyond that, especially if Desmond continues to be unavailable. If none of the optionable pitchers "deserves" to be optioned, and therefore won't be optioned, the implication must be that one of the non-optionable pitchers is going to be — must be — traded. That is the only ray of sunshine coming out of this day. Hope it's Rodriguez.

Let's see who is ready to keep playing the game for pride. These guys do have a history of a bad game after losing a player– all the bad injuries were followed by out of sync games. Let's see some of that famous resilience. Go Nats. Keep you heads up. Rare for this team to be in this lop- sided of a game.

Sure am glad I went to the last two games and not this one.Theo, mood you find this game depressing you shouldn't watch baseball. EVERY team has games like this in a 162-game season, which is why they play 162. These are the easiest games for the players (well, maybe except Gio) to just put behind them because it wasn't close and you don't have to agonize about bad plays like Lombo's or Shsrk's asattering to the outcome. (Of course, this is assuming this doesn't end up like a Rockies' type game, which we've only played this year against the Rockies. But even those games end up being about a whole pile of playson both sides and not one in particular.)Just have to put this game in the "whatever" category.

Agreed ank needed to go, Still tough to deal with. Another experience today to help this team be tough for the stretch. This is not something they are used to anymore and won't want to repeat. Use it, learn from it.

NJ, fans understand the move. Players? They are losing a teammate, a mentor to the young guys and a friend. Listening to the Clip interview, he talked about how close this team is. The downside is the adjustment necessary when one of their own is gone, empty locker, empty seat on the bench (and maybe they also thought it would be DeRosa, if they thought about it at all.)Plus they are tired and the adrenalin high of the previous two games could be wearing off.

More likely we are seeing an angry team that is tired of losing. They came out with a head of steam today, detetminef to break their streak. Stammen not pitching badly but getting hit also. Time to rest the regulars for the next four games?

Kids need to grow up quick. If they want to be successful in the play off hunt, they'll adjust to the roster changes.I'm not commenting on the team effect, just the move itself. You can't win them all and I expected to get beat by Dickey. At least Gio didn't waste a good outing like last Saturday nite.

Starting to get a little concerned about Gio…26 ER in his last 46 IP. He hasn't looked like the same guy he was earlier in the season. Hopefully just a little slump and he can find his groove again. I think the error and the HR got to him today…just changed the whole complexion of the game.

It's already a high-character team. Every experience just toughens them more. Lose a popular veteran – ace 1b has a terrible start – nothing seems to be going right for you? Bear down because these things are going to happen again, and later in the season when the pressure just keeps building. I have a feeling the coaches and veterans are going to earn their keep today and this weekend. My bet is on this group to recover, regroup and go forward. Who knows? Maybe the Mets will decide to rest Dickey and we'll go on offensive tear in the late innings? It's baseball – anything can happen.

Laddie Blah Blah said… DeRosa? Gee whiz, I know Davey loves him. If they want him on the bench make him a coach, and get a RH guy who can both hit off the bench and give the Nats some D, somewhere. Or some speed, at least.DeRosa, as a pinch hitter, has an OPS of over 1.000 (and that was before today's double)

Henry did the same thing in 2011. He was struggling with his command in tight ball games, so the team put him in low pressure situations, even using him in long relief. After builing up his confidence and getting a hold of his command, he finished the season strong.

Big picture: 2 out of 3 from the Mets keeps them 7 games out. Braves lost 2 out of 3 to the Giants keeps them 3.5 games out. 2 or 3 out of 4 against the Braves would be OK. I am anxious to see what we can do against Dickey when we don't implode so early; he is not as dominant as he was last month.

I can excuse Gio… Stammen really stunk today… Storen look good as did Leon… The guys did not quit and made the score respectable so this is not the worse loss of the year score wisse… now the biggest series of the season at home!

Folks have been making a big deal about Danny getting a hit from the right side against Dickey, but he's been batting RH against him all along (and it hasn't helped much). I remember hearing last year that he decided to bat RH so that facing Dickey wouldn't mess up his timing as much for the next game when he'll be batting LH. I'm glad he got one hit against him, but this does not mean he's figured it out or that he's going to bat RH against other pitchers.